Duranta:
This rapidly growing shrub can get 10 to 15 feet tall and over 5 feet wide. It’s listed as hardy to only zone 9, so here in Central Texas, it dies to the ground in winter in most gardens.

Duranta is evergreen, hardly even skipping a bit in the coldest of winters.If Duranta dies to the ground in winter in your garden, simply prune it back to about 3 inches from the ground and it will reemerge from the roots in spring.

There are several cultivars of Duranta, but my favorite is the purple-flowering one. It flowers from early spring all the way through fall and doesn’t bat an eyelash at heat or the lack of rainfall.

If you want to attract native birds to your landscape, they’ll love the fruit of the white-flowering cultivar. Duranta will perform best in full sun, but can take light shade.

If you have blackberries and have harvested all of the fruit, tip-prune the canes back to about 4 feet to promote branching, and thus a heavier fruit crop next season.